The Fastest Way to Drop Pounds: Cut out starch based carbs.
What does this mean? No more pasta? No more potatoes? No more pizza?
Luckily we are in an era where there are alternatives for everything like black bean and chickpea pasta, cauliflower pizza crust, and sweet potatoes to replace all of the above... so you have chance to substitute if you can get committed to the process and plan.
Do me a favor... as you walk around the streets or take a stroll through a local park or mall, take a look at the midsections of most of the men. You will see a very common theme: keg syndrome.
As for the women, although you do not see the typical "keg-like" bulge in the midsection, you see the formation of a softening top layer and a classic case of what is referred to on the streets as "muffin-top".. (where loose fat tissue begins to sag over the belt-line)... I know it is difficult to to read this... but please continue.. (I still love you)..
How do you clean this up quickly and in a healthy way?
Immediate elimination. You heard that correctly. Moderation does not work. Elimination with dramatic addition does work. Moderation opens up the door for "just for today".. " this isn't that bad for you".. "I will get back on the plan tomorrow"... commit for 21 days.. see how you feel. (take one day at a time- print a calendar and put an X through day after it is completed)
What is dramatic addition? I call it the "nutrient flood"...
The nutrient flood means you fill your body with nutrients starting with high intakes of green vegetables, high fiber fruits such as apples and pears, as well as "raw"broccoli/ cabbage/ and cauliflower (which are known as cruciferous vegetables that contain cancer-fighting properties once the cellular walls are broken through chewing and digestion).. Other cruciferous vegetables include brussel sprouts and kale.. that is why it is always important to eat your brussels!
The inclusion of these veggies into the daily diet is critical from a cellular health standpoint, but as from a nutrient standpoint. This will provide the feeling of fullness without the intake of higher calories.
Eating larger amount of raw, steamed, and semi-cooked vegetables will fill you up and also provide adequate fiber, protein, and nutrients that will kill sugar-cravings and cravings for lower nutrient foods.
The first week will be your most difficult, so make sure you have a lot of fresh foods on hand- so whenever you feel the cravings you can reach over to the fruit bowl or veggie dish with a dash of hummus for instant gratification.
Personally, I found this the best way to drop pounds when you are feeling "extended" around your waistline, bloated, and carrying that extra 10lbs. from winter hibernation in the colder climates.
As for proteins from chicken, fish, lean meats... steer clear of cold cuts and instead favor wild fish 3 times per week such as salmon, with the in between days including fish or lean meats that are organic, pasture-raised, and from local farms.
The opening of farmers markets makes this quite easy. Brands like Perdue are well marketed, but have very poor conditions in which the chickens are raised.
When you work with local farms that raise chicken and cattle, you can actually learn how they are fed-- grain free is preferred-- and at times can even taste in the meat faint tastes of berries if those were a part of the daily feed.
I prefer limiting the intake of animal product to about 10-15% of the total daily intake.. allowing most of the daily caloric intake to come from fruits and veggies-- which also contain a lot more protein than people think (remember Popeye?.. spinach is one of those protein rich greens)...
So before you continue on a program of "expansion".. hit the brakes and start to include high nutrient foods into your diet.
Most of these foods are located around the perimeter of the food store.. so avoiding the middle aisle is a good tip.
On a final note, I recently shared some tips to my friends Suze and Riley on how they can keep "pasta" in their diets.. using a brand such as BANZA which makes high protein, high fiber, low carb pasta... This provides the feeling of eating pasta without the negative carb effects. I would still limit this to lunch time only and treat as the side dish rather than the main entree.
Make your veggies the entree and you can not go wrong.. especially if you follow up with some fruits for dessert.
Change your diet, change your body. Simple. Show me a bad body and I will show you the intersection of bad nutrition, low exercise, and questionable genetics!
